Opel’s New Insignia Sports Tourer – 1.5-litre turbo petrol

Opel’s Impressive New Insignia Sports Tourer

Hot on the heels of their new Insignia Grand Sport (5dr hatchback/coupe), Opel have launched the estate version, which is called a ‘Sports Tourer’. This spacious, family-friendly, load-carrier makes an instant impression with its broad, elegant stance and striking good looks. The handsome side profile of the ‘Sports Tourer’ is enhanced by an upper-window chrome trim-strip which continues across the rear pillar before dipping along the tailgate edges and into the rear light clusters.

The new Opel Insignia range is built on an all-new new platform, which has allowed the car to grow substantially – it’s now almost as large as full-size executive models in the class above. The wheelbase is significantly longer too, thanks to shorter overhangs than before, allowing extra legroom for rear-seat passengers. The overall result is a car which is much more practical than the model it replaces.

There are four trim levels to choose from – SC, SRi, SE and Elite. Engine choices include a 1.5-litre turbo petrol with 140bhp and 250Nm of torque. Diesel engines come in either a 1.6-litre turbo diesel with 110PS or 136PS, or a 2.0-litre turbo diesel with 170PS. The petrol engine is mated to a smooth 6-speed manual gearbox – as is the 1.6-litre turbo diesel, with the 2.0-litre turbo diesel engine available in manual or automatic guise.

My test car was the new Insignia ‘Sports Tourer’ SRi model fitted with Opel’s 1.5-litre turbo petrol engine and finished in, head-turning, Cosmic Grey metallic paint. This engine is capable of a 0-100km/h sprint in just 10.2 seconds, leading to a top speed of 207km/h (where permitted). Fuel consumption is as low as 4.8l/100km on an extra-urban driving cycle, which is impressive for this size of car. Co2 emissions from this 1.5-litre engine are 132g/km, leading to annual road tax of just €280. Optional extras fitted to my test car included IntelliLux LED matrix headlamps, leather seats, panoramic sunroof, inductive charging, power tailgate with under-bumper release ‘kick sensor’, front & rear parking sensors, 8” digital colour display, heads-up display, rear view camera, winter pack 2 and a driver assistance pack.

On the road, the new Insignia ‘Sports Tourer’ is comfortable, composed and competent – in fact, so much so, that it is good enough to give pricier ‘premium’ rivals a run for their money. Agile handling and excellent chassis control makes the ‘Sports Tourer’ a pleasure to drive on motorways as well as city streets. At just a fraction under 5 metres in length, this is a big car. Nowhere is this shown more than in its spacious cabin and cavernous load bay. Boot space is an impressive 560-litres with the rear seats in place. However, drop the electrically-folding rear seats and this figure increases to a whopping 1,665-litres. The driving position is comfortable, with plenty of adjustment for any size of driver. As a result, visibility is more than adequate. The quality of the cabin materials used in the new Insignia ‘Sports Tourer’ are excellent and the interior design & layout is what we have come to expect from Opel of late. Thanks to a wide range of advanced safety systems in the all-new Insignia range, a five star safety rating from Euro NCAP has been awarded.

New engine technology and a new chassis combine to make the new Opel Insignia ‘Grand Sport’ and ‘Sports Tourer’ a whole new experience. Prices for the ‘Sports Tourer’ start at just €28,550, while the SRi model I drove starts at €30,550.